Mission

The Mission of Research Corporation for Science Advancement is to advance early stage, high-potential, basic scientific research.

RCSA provides catalytic funding for research and sponsors conferences to support:

• An engaged community of early career faculty
• Innovative ideas for basic research
• Integration of research and science teaching
• Interdisciplinary research
• Building the academic leadership of the future

Strategic Priorities

To advance our mission, RCSA is working to:

• Further develop and strengthen RCSA’s two core programs, Cottrell Scholars and Scialog, which build on its 100-year legacy of supporting innovative basic research in the physical sciences.
• Leverage partnerships and scientific community building to maximize impact and exercise flexibility to embrace unanticipated opportunities to support innovative research in the physical sciences.
• Help ensure the future of science is innovative and impactful by welcoming, engaging, and nurturing the brightest minds from the widest range of backgrounds, institutions, and life experiences.

Core Programs

Cottrell Scholars

• Invest in the early stage, high-potential, basic physical science research of the most promising early career scientists at research universities and primarily undergraduate institutions.
• Implement a multilayered set of activities that supports each scholar to develop as a successful teacher-scholar and gain the skills and relationships necessary to become leaders in their respective research communities.
• Support Cottrell Scholars’ efforts to improve STEM education and build the scientific workforce of the future.

Scialog

• Invest in interdisciplinary, innovative, basic research on problems of high complexity that are timely and of significant value to society.
• Foster new collaborations across multiple disciplines to spark innovative ideas, stimulate significant advances on chosen topics, and attract higher levels of funding.